Living here in sunny Bognor Regis, we are ideally placed to reach much of the South coast with its beaches, pretty towns and attractions, as well as the South Downs a little further inland, and the cities of Brighton, Portsmouth and Southampton either side. After a long family discussion, here are our favourite South coast activities and places to visit.
Hit the beach
The beaches, of which there are many of course. One of our favourites is at West Wittering which has lots of soft sand and plenty of sandcastle-building space when the tide goes out. Even the ostensibly pebble beaches like the one out of our window produce a vast swathe of sand to play on when the tide is low. Have a look at our beach pics here for more of an idea.
Mooching about
This is best achieved in places with a great cafe culture like Arundel or Chichester. Lots of places to unearth retail treasure, but also plenty of opportunities for coffee and cake pit-stops!
Meet some local birds
This can be done in our lovely Hotham Park, but an even greater range of beautiful birds from all corners of the earth can be found at the Wildfowl and Wetland Trust at Arundel. We are WWT members and visit often. The RSPB centre at Pulborough Brooks is also well worth a visit.
Run like the wind!
About an hour away you will also find the beauties of the New Forest, with its wide open spaces, beautiful arboretum near Brockenhurst, wonderful picnic spots and stunning scenery. You will also be lucky enough to see the wonderful ponies, and maybe some donkeys, sheep and cows if you're lucky!
Become a Tudor
Step back in time to discover what life was really like in a Tudor kitchen or farmhouse, explore their gardens, even taste some pottage. With a wide variety of buildings taken apart piece by piece and painstakingly reassembled like some crazy jigsaw puzzle, the Weald and Downland Museum a few miles north of Chichester is well worth a visit. They also have some fantastic events throughout the year, such as fairs and food festivals.
Join the fleet
At Portsmouth's Historic Dockyard you can climb aboard Nelson's famous battleship, Victory, and see just how life on board must have been over 200 years ago - just mind your head! There is also the brilliant interactive Action Stations for children to play; the wreck of Henry VIII's Mary Rose; take a boat trip; and much more.
Have the best kids' day out
For a brilliant day out for everyone from 6 months up, head to Paulton's Park, home of Peppa Pig World, you can read our review here. Or for Hello Kitty fans, why not check out the brand new HK Garden at Drusilla's Park in East Sussex? Already a brilliant day out, with animals, adventure playgrounds and a fab splash pool perfect for hot days, the addition of the infamous Kitty has made Drusilla's even bigger and better. Here's our Drusilla's review.
Traditional seaside fun
In Bognor Regis, Littlehampton and Worthing you will find all the traditional seaside entertainments like crazy golf, amusement arcades, and ride-ons, as well as plenty of opportunities to indulge in fish & chips and ice creams! You can take a stroll on the pier, build a sandcastle, watch the entertainment in high season, or just lounge in a deckchair. A perfect British day out!